Ranking the 5 worst Chelsea attackers of the Abramovich era
Roman Abramovich has, over the close of nearly two decades, spent vast amounts of money on superstar talent to elevate Chelsea Football Club. Many titles and honors have followed, but not all of his signings have been smash hits.
It is a popular belief that Abramovich bought Chelsea after seeing the exciting Manchester United vs Real Madrid encounter in the 2003 Champions League. The match saw Ronaldo Nazario receive a standing ovation from the Old Trafford crowd for his dazzling display. It was reportedly from there that Abramovich's obsession with attacking and free-flowing football began.
He searched for scintillating talent season after season. In his time, he has signed some great players. But not every player went down with legendary status such as Didier Drogba or Michael Ballack.
On that note, here are
Chelsea's 5 worst attackers signed by Abramovich
#5 Adrian Mutu
Adrian Mutu was signed in the summer of Abramovich's takeover in 2003 for a then hefty £15 million. He arrived on the back of being a prolific goalscorer with Parma in Italy. He had scored 22 goals in 38 games for the Italian side.
Along with Hernan Crespo and Damien Duff, Mutu was part of a summer splurge to transform Chelsea into title contenders.
Mutu is the record goalscorer in the Romanian national team along with legend George Hagi, yet was a disappointment at Chelsea due to his distractions and off-field image. He had a lack of discipline and also had a very public falling out with Jose Mourinho. He was later found guilty of cocaine use and was served with a seven-month ban from football as Chelsea terminated his contract.
The torrid affair did not end there, as Chelsea opted to sue Mutu for his costly failure at the club. This resulted in a case being heard at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The Court declared that the Romanian would have to pay Chelsea £15.2 million to compensate for damages.
#4 Radamel Falcao
Radamel Falcao was unquestionably one of the world's most fearsome strikers in the early 2010s. His spell at Porto and then Atletico Madrid brought multiple Europa League trophies and established his reputation as a ruthlessly clinical predator.
At the UEFA Super Cup in 2012, he absolutely demolished Chelsea's backline to mesmerizing effect. He scored a hat-trick in Atletico's 4-1 win over Chelsea.
In 2013, he joined Monaco. Cut to 2015, and a combination of injuries, fitness and form meant the man nicknamed "tiger" was reduced to a tame housecat. AS Monaco decided to ship him out on loan after not being able to afford to have their star player underperform.
He joined Manchester United on loan for a spectacularly subpar season. He scored just four times in 29 appearances for The Red Devils.
Chelsea went and gambled with a loan deal for the Colombian, giving him the number 9 shirt. He barely featured in a disastrous 2015-16 campaign for Chelsea as Jose Mourinho was sacked with the club in 17th place, ending up at 15th.
#3 Alvaro Morata
Morata arrived at the club in 2017 on the back of Antonio Conte's harsh decision to expel the outstanding Diego Costa, after having just won a Premier League trophy. Chelsea were directed to approach Alvaro Morata, a similar yet more mobile lanky target man who shone for Real Madrid before a complicated time for Juventus.
Chelsea forked out £60 Million for a signing they assumed would be a pillar for the next decade. Having started well, many had hoped that he would excel.
Sadly, instead what they got was a weak and underconfident figure who seemed far out of his depth as a focal point for the pressure of Chelsea. He scored just 24 times before being shipped out on loan to Atletico Madrid, never to return.
#2 Andriy Shevchenko
On paper, Andriy Shevchenko's signing in 2006 was the perfect marquee transfer. It added one of Europe's best players at the time to an increasingly ambitious Chelsea team, out to build a legacy under Jose Mourinho.
The former Ballon D'or winning Ukrainian legend was 29 at the time. He had scored 173 goals in 296 games for AC Milan, establishing himself as one of Europe's most formidable talents.
What was even more appealing was that Shevchenko was a personal favorite of Abramovich. He was signed without consulting Jose Mourinho, creating a strained relationship between owner and manager. This reflected in poor results on the pitch as well.
Perhaps it all started to fall apart even before he arrived, as Mourinho was vocal about not getting a say in the £30 million transfer.
Shevchenko's poor form on the pitch didn't help either, as the striker looked a shadow of the legendary player at Dynamo Kyiv and AC Milan. He scored just 22 goals in his two years at the club.
#1 Fernando Torres
It is hard to categorize a player who won the Europa League and Champions League as a flop. But his ability and influence on the pitch was very clearly weakened by sensational misses, a lack of confidence and fragile forward play.
Despite the accolades, the general consensus is that Torres was a huge disappointment at Chelsea. It was a poorly timed transfer for a player past his prime.
He was bought for a jaw-dropping 50 million pounds in January 2011. But Torres looked a pale shadow of the clinical and stylish striker who played for Liverpool and Atletico Madrid. Struggling for form and fitness, his four-year sojourn at Chelsea saw him lose confidence and question his own ability.
Many Chelsea fans saw him as a liability, wasting clear cut chances that his predecessor Didier Drogba thrived on. The hefty price tag also put pressure on managers to select him in the team. This was a time when the alternative options on the bench seemed better placed.
Quick Links
Aditya Singh